Object Record
Images
Metadata
Object Name |
Statue |
Title |
Statue of a wahine (Maori woman) carrying a pepi (baby) in a pikau (woven flax backpack) and drapped in a korowai (long feather cloak). |
Description |
Statue of a wahine (Maori woman) carrying a pepi (baby) in a pikau (woven flax backpack) and draped in a korowai (cloak). Caste in plaster of paris, which has been bronzed, the statue stands on a concrete plinth. The wahine is one of a group of six figures, made by James Ingram McDonald whilst working for the New Zealand Tourist Department. The figures were made specifically for the New Zealand International Exhibition, held in Christchurch, 1906 – 1907, where they stood in the exhibition's main corridor. The figures portrayed a "romanticised version of ancient Maori life" (Kernot, B.) the other five figures in the group were a man standing, a woman seated, a boy playing a putorino (flute), a carver at work and a girl making a poi. At the conclusion of the exhibition the group was acquired by Mr William Quinn, who owned the Makikihi Brickworks and built Quinn’s Arcade in Waimate. The statues were stored on his farm for 60 years. When the farm changed hands, the wahine statue was the only salvageable figure. She was sold at auction to Mr M J Meehan, who donated her to the Waimate Historical Society in September 1967. The museum renovated the statue and she was formally unveiled at the museum by the Director of Canterbury museum on 24th October 1967. Today she stands on display in the courtroom of the Waimate Museum & Archives. |
Date |
1906 |
Artist |
McDonald, James Ingham |
Dimensions |
H-233 W-84 cm |
Height (cm) |
233.000 |
Width (cm) |
84.000 |
People |
McDonald, James Ingham Meehan, MJ Quinn, William |
Subjects |
Makikihi Statue |
Search Terms |
Baby Backpack Carrara plaster Cloak Flax Korowai Makikihi Maori New Zealand International Exhibition Pepi Pikau Statue Wahine |
Catalogue Number |
2010-030-001 |
Relation |
Show Related Records... |